Mask of the Fox
by Nagato3986
Summary: Naruto's life was bad from the beginning. Can the help of a new friend show Naruto a new way to see life? Will the pain of loss and dicouragement mar their friendship? Most importantly, how many secrets is Naruto's friend keeping hidden from him? NaruXOC
1. Prologue

Hi! This is the prologue for _Mask of the Fox. _I hope you like the story! Check out my other story _Away From Konoha. _Please leave reviews!

"Talking"

_Thinking_

Prologue

The ANBU were searching the area for him. His eyes were the cause for all the trouble in Konohagakure.

"Amaterasu!" exclaimed the red-eyed man. A black fire erupted from his eyes and one by one, each ANBU member was consumed in a fiery death.

"Capture him! We can't let Itachi escape!" exclaimed the ANBU captain.

"Yugao, we can't fight him! Most of the ANBU is already dead!" informed another ANBU member.

"He stole the scroll that shows where all the Tailed Beasts are located! We need to kill that traitor!" said Yugao aggressively.

"Yugao, you go back and take care of the Uzumaki kid. Komachi and I will take care of this guy," said the ANBU member.

"Thank you Towa. Whatever you do, don't get yourself killed, got it?" said Yugao.

"I won't, just go already!" assured Towa. He ran to the edge of a building and leaped to the next.

_I need to protect Naruto,_ thought Yugao. She ran to Naruto's apartment and broke down the door. "Naruto, wake up!"

"Huh? Who's there?" asked Naruto. Naruto was seven at the time of the Great Konoha Tragedy. Akatsuki members entered the village and stole items of great significance, including a scroll given to the Third Hokage that showed the location of all nine Tailed Beasts.

"Get out of bed!" shouted Yugao.

Naruto immediately got out of his bed and ran to the door.

"I'm sorry for doing this," said Yugao before punching Naruto in the stomach. She picked him up and leapt off the building. Yugao kept running until she reached the Hokage Mansion. She ran inside and knocked on the Third Hokage's door.

"Come in," he said.

Yugao opened the door and dropped Naruto on a couch at the far corner of the room.

"He is safe," said the Hokage with a sigh of relief.

"Towa and Komachi are still fighting Itachi. So far, Itachi has killed 18 ANBU members," stated Yugao.

"I see…And Naruto, he knows nothing of this, correct?" asked the Hokage.

"No, and we do not plan to tell him anything about this any time soon," said a person walking into the room.

"Ah, Kakashi, it's good that you came," said the Hokage.

"Why is the fox brat here?" asked Kakashi.

"Don't call him that!" yelled Yugao. She smacked Kakashi across the head.

"Both of you stop!" yelled the Hokage. He lifted a scroll off his desk. He broke the seal on the front and let it roll down, revealing a series of endless swirls, leading to the center of the paper. There was some writing around the swirls that the three couldn't understand. "This scroll allows Naruto to be given the same freedom everyone else in the village has, unlike the rest of the Jinchūriki. Do you know why?"

"No sir," said Kakashi and Yugao.

"Because of his mother, the only known person to have the Rinnegan besides the Six Realms Sage," explained the old man. "If you get him angry enough, he could acquire the power to destroy as much as 20 ANBU members."

"What are we supposed to do about that?" asked Kakashi.

"Watch over him or else he might do something that we would all regret," replied the Hokage.

"Yes sir!" the two ANBU members yelled before leaving the room.

When they left, the Hokage noticed, "They forgot to take Naruto back to his apartment…"

Naruto lay snoring on the couch, oblivious to everything.

_He should stay here for the night. I don't want the Akatsuki to find him at his apartment, _thought the Hokage.

The next day, Naruto was going to go the Ninja Academy for the first time. How will the day at school shape his future?


	2. Chapter 1

Hi! Thanks for the reviews and advice guys! This is the first chapter in _Mask of the Fox_. I hope you guys like it. Please leave reviews! And please look at my first story, _Away From Konoha._

"Talking"

"**Kyuubi (Nine-Tailed Fox)"**

_Thinking or talking to Kyuubi_

Chapter 1

The Ninja Academy

"**Naruto, wake up! You're going to miss your first day of school," shouted Kyuubi.**

_So what? I don't care. No one wants me to be there, _said the blonde haired boy. "Whoa, where am I?"

"You are in my office," said the Hokage. His face turned from one of seriousness to a calm and pleasant expression.

"Why am I here?" asked Naruto groggily. He was still waking up from his morning daze.

"You need to go to school today, so why don't you just run along," said the old man, trying to avoid Naruto's question. Naruto was about to leave before the Hokage said, "Before you go, take this." The old man opened a desk drawer and took out a leather pouch. He handed it to Naruto and said, "It contains all the materials you need to start class today."

"Thank you very much," said Naruto in great appreciation. The blonde haired boy opened the door to leave the Hokage's office. He ran downstairs and ran straight to the academy.

"Haha, look it's the demon brat!" shouted a kid sitting on the swing. Everyone laughed except for the Hyuuga girl, who stared blankly at Naruto with her colorless eyes. Naruto went inside and was followed by other children, snickering and making loud, obnoxious comments.

"Hey, demon brat, you forgot something," said one of the instructors. The man threw a paper bomb at Naruto, which exploded in a matter of seconds.

"**I know the drill," said Kyuubi. **He quickly mended Naruto's many wounds.

"What the-" said one of the instructors before being cut off by the school bell.

Naruto walked into the classroom and sat in the back of the class, where he usually sat. He waved at the teacher to say hi. The teacher for that day was Iruka, the only person besides the Hokage that actually showed Naruto any kindness.

_Ok, let's see who's here today. There's that Uchiha kid. I kind of feel bad for him after the killings. There's the Hyuugas. Funny, they usually never sit next to each other. Why is Hinata looking at me like that? There's Kiba. His family never tried to hurt me before, so I guess he's cool. Sakura Haruno, wow, she has a really big forehead. Here comes the dumbest blonde in the world, Ino. Her dad was always nice, though. Shino…there's not much to say about him. The Nara kid is probably just like his dad, lazy. There's Chouji. I don't like to criticize him, but he needs to lay off the chips. Tenten is still the same as always, completely oblivious to everything. Lee…overly enthusiastic, nothing else. I guess that's it, _thought Naruto, criticizing everyone in the class.

"Good, I think everyone's here," said Iruka. He picked up some chalk and wrote on the board:

SHADOW CLONES

"Today I will be testing you guys by checking how many shadow clones you can produce by using all of your chakra reserves. Raise your hand if you don't know how to produce a shadow clone," said Iruka.

Sakura, Ino, Chouji, Lee, and Shikamaru raised their hands. Everyone else looked at Naruto, expecting him to raise his hand.

_I guess it was a good idea for you to teach me how to make shadow clones that summer, _said Naruto.

"**I told you so!" said Kyuubi mockingly.**

"Naruto, don't lie! You can't make a shadow clone!" yelled Sakura.

"Sakura, be quiet. Naruto, would you mind being the first one to produce the shadow clones?" said Iruka.

Naruto got up from his seat and walked down to the front of the class.

"**Alright Naruto, use up all of your reserves, ok?" said Kyuubi.**

"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!" yelled Naruto while performing a hand sign. Over 200 shadow clones appeared in the class room. Everyone's mouths were left agape.

"N-Naruto used that demon in him didn't he!" yelled Neji. He ran up to Naruto's clones in attempt to destroy them with a single Gentle Fist technique. Once he saw that the technique had no effect, he activated his Byakugan. He then ran in front of the first hundred clones and performed the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms technique. Only about 30 clones were hit. The others grabbed Neji's arms and held him down.

"Neji, calm down!" yelled Naruto. After Neji realized it would be hopeless to break free he stopped struggling and Naruto released him. "What's wrong with you today?!" Naruto then forced his shadow clones to disappear. Neji walked back to his seat, embarrassed.

"Ugh…Good job Naruto," said Iruka with a bit of unease in his voice. He called each student that already knew how to make a shadow clone. The few who didn't know were taught and quickly grasped the method of cloning. The only person who couldn't create a shadow clone was Lee, but everyone knew he couldn't access his chakra reserves due to some strange deficiency.

_Why does everyone think I'm some sort of idiot?_ thought Naruto. He watched as each person created numerous clones. The most shadow clones made, besides the 200 that Naruto made, were 20 by Sasuke Uchiha.

"Good job everyone!" congratulated Iruka. He walked across the front of the class and stood in front of the board. "That's it for today. You all can go now." Everyone got up from their seats and exited the classroom. "Naruto, I need to talk to you."

"Yes Iruka-sensei?" asked Naruto.

"I just wanted to tell you not to listen to what everyone says. You have a…special gift that allows you to do extraordinary things, like those 200 clones you made," said Iruka.

"Yeah, Kyuubi had to teach me for a month so I could make just 30 clones," said Naruto.

"Anyway, just be yourself," said Iruka.

"Ok, bye," said Naruto. Naruto ran out the door and left the academy. Then, four students, Sasuke, Neji, Ino, and Sakura, confronted Naruto before he left the courtyard.

"Where do you think you're going?" asked Sasuke.

"Home," said Naruto, pushing pass the four. Neji struck Naruto on the spine with a Gentle Fist technique. Naruto didn't stumble or fall like they expected him to.

"How are you still standing after that?" asked Sakura.

"It's the demon obviously," said Ino.

"Try that again and the ANBU will come to get you," said Naruto.

"You're kidding, right?" asked Neji.

"Hit me again and you'll see," said Naruto.

"He's bluffing!" yelled Sasuke. He ran towards Naruto, hand curled into a fist, and tried to punch him. Then, almost out of nowhere, Yugao appeared and blocked the hit.

"Do not harm this child," said Yugao. The four children ran away in fear of being caught by the ANBU captain. "You really have to learn to stick up for yourself instead of calling me or Kakashi for help."

"If I stood up for myself when people would try to beat me up, those people would be dead," said Naruto plainly.

"What has Kyuubi been teaching you?" asked Yugao.

"Stuff," said Naruto. He showed a small smile.

"Whatever, just try to handle at least one situation by yourself," said Yugao.

"Ok, see you later," said Naruto.

Yugao immediately disappeared and Naruto walked home and prepared for the next day.


	3. Chapter 2

**PLEASE READ THIS: to all those people sending me messages about this story being a story that involves Naruto getting the Rinnegan, it's not. If you're going to leave a review about the story, don't leave one that says I've completely ruined the story because Naruto's getting the Rinnegan. Other than that, please enjoy my next chapter. And please read my other story Away From Konoha (Naruto gets the Rinnegan in this one and there's nothing you can do about it. :P).**

"Talking"

_Thinking or talking to Kyuubi_

"**Kyuubi"**

**Chapter 2**

**Cressela**

"**Naruto, if you're late today, I will kill you!" shouted Kyuubi.**

_Shut up. I know you can't do anything to me or else you'll die, too, _said Naruto. He got up and went to the refrigerator and pulled out a carton of milk. He went to the small cupboard and took out a box of cereal. He ate and put on a black shirt and a pair of white pants. He took the pouch that the Hokage had given him and left.

"Naruto, wait up!" shouted a pink-haired girl running down the street.

"What do you want?" asked Naruto.

"I just wanted to say that I was sorry for yesterday. It was wrong of me to try and hurt you," said Sakura.

"Are you just saying that because the ANBU captain almost caught you guys?" asked Naruto.

"No, no, not because of that. You must feel horrible because of the way everyone treats. I thought about it for a while and I thought if I were put in your position, having the Nine-Tailed Fox, I wouldn't want to be mistreated the way we mistreated you. Plus, I think you could kill us if you wanted to." She giggled and said, "Is it ok if I walk with you to the academy?"

"Sure," said Naruto. They walked toward the academy, talking and telling jokes. Naruto enjoyed the company. They got to the academy. Everyone was staring at them.

"What are you looking at?!" yelled Sakura.

"It's ok. I'll just go to class," said Naruto. He walked inside and waited in his seat in the back of the room.

"**At least there's another person that doesn't hate you now," said Kyuubi.**

_Yeah, but now people are going to hurt her for hanging out with me, _said Naruto.

"Everyone!" shouted Iruka to get the kids' attention. "We have a new student today. Her name is Cressela. I would like you all to feel welcome."

A girl entered the room. She was wearing a black shirt and black pants. She was a raven-haired girl with tan skin and bright violet eyes. She was very tall and slender. She walked to the center of the room and said, with the voice of an angel, "Hi, my name is Cressela. It's very nice to meet you." All of the boys in the class stared at her with intense infatuation. She then walked to the desk in the back, next to Naruto.

"Hi, I'm Naruto." he said finding it hard to speak in Cressela's presence.

"Hi," she replied.

Iruka began to talk and give several different speeches about how they would be taught about different ninja wars, the Hokages, and the different ninja techniques they would be learning in the years to come. All the boys stared at Cressela, and all the girls looked back because of the new found jealousy they had. Even Sasuke stared back at her. For some reason, Cressela never seemed to notice the people staring at her.

"Hey, Cressela," Naruto whispered. "Aren't you kinda uncomfortable with all the people staring at you?"

"Huh? They're staring at me?" said Cressela, completely oblivious to everything. She looked at everyone and widened her eyes, enhancing the intimidating violet color in her eyes, forcing everyone to turn around.

"What did you do?" asked Naruto, awestruck from what he just saw.

"I scared them. Most people get scared when I widen my eyes because my eyes aren't any usual eye color, as you can see," replied Cressela.

"Yeah, they're kinda purple, but I don't understand what's so scary about them," said Naruto. The, she widen her eyes. "Nope, not scary."

"Really? It usually scares most people," she said.

"Yeah, well I've seen scarier eyes," said Naruto, thinking of Kyuubi's eyes.

"**Shut up, kid," said Kyuubi.**

"What did you guys do yesterday? I'm kinda behind on a few lessons," said Cressela.

"A few lessons? It's the second day of school. How can you be behind on a few lessons?" said Naruto bewildered. "Whatever. Yesterday, Iruka asked us to create shadow clones, using all of our chakra reserves."

"Shadow clones? The shadow clone technique is a forbidden jutsu. How did you guys learn it?" said Cressela.

"I taught it to half of the class because they said they would be my friends if I would. Then, Iruka saw almost everyone using the technique to try and kill me. Yesterday, since half of the class knew the technique, he had no choice but to teach it to the few kids who didn't know it," explained Naruto.

"How did you learn it?" asked Cressela.

"I was taught…by someone," said Naruto, trying to avoid telling her about Kyuubi.

"Is that someone called the Nine-Tailed Fox?" asked Cressela.

"How did you know?" asked Naruto.

"I've learned all of the names of the people who are Jinchūrikis," said Cressela.

"And you don't hate me?" asked Naruto.

"No, why would I? It's not like you were the one who tried to destroy this village. You're just the one who has to put up with a stubborn old fox," said Cressela.

"Stubborn? That isn't enough to describe Kyuubi," said Naruto.

"You can talk to him?" asked Cressela, seemingly surprised.

"Yeah, I have to talk to him through my thoughts, though," said Naruto.

"Ok, let's talk after class. We might get in trouble with Iruka if he sees us talking," said Cressela.

The rest of the time, they had nothing to do but to pay attention to Iruka and his monotonous lessons of the circumference of a shuriken. Most of the children wondered how they were ever going to use that information in battle. More boring lessons came and went by the hour. Almost 12 people in the class were asleep.

"Alright, that's it for today. You guys can leave now," said Iruka.

Everyone who was asleep woke up and was glad to leave the room. Naruto was escorted out of the room by Sakura, Cressela, and Neji. Neji apologized right after class ended.

Once outside, Naruto asked, "What did you want to talk about?"

"How do you deal with most of the village trying to hurt or even kill you?" asked Cressela. Sakura and Neji lowered their heads after the question was asked.

"I don't know. I've just learned to deal with it over the years. It doesn't bother me that much anymore considering everyone knows I can kill them in less than a second," said Naruto. "Now let me ask you a question. Where are you from?"

"That's for me to know and for you to never find out," said Cressela. She giggled.

"C'mon, seriously, where are you from?" asked Naruto again.

"I'm from Takigakure," she said.

"Wow, that's pretty far from here," said Sakura.

"I had to move because my dad was dying from a poison that he ingested somehow and we heard there was an amazing medical ninja here called Tsunade. She's helping my dad now. She said that after my dad is fully cured from the poison, she would be leaving Konohagakure," explained Cressela.

"I hope your dad gets better soon," said Neji.

"Hey, what the heck are all of you doing? Why are you hanging out with that demon kid?" shouted Sasuke from across the courtyard.

"We're talking," said Naruto.

"Shut up, since when can you talk to me?!" shouted Sasuke.

"Leave him alone. He's never done anything to you," said Neji.

"Let me handle this," said Naruto.

"Are you gonna call ANBU again, coward?" asked Sasuke.

"Nope, not this time. I've had enough of you. I'm gonna finish you off once and for all," said Naruto.

Sasuke ran up to Naruto and tried to punch him. Naruto blocked the hit and kicked Sasuke in the stomach.

"I thought the Uchihas were strong," said Naruto.

Then, Sasuke activated his Sharingan. Only one tomoe could be seen in his blood-red eyes. Sasuke suddenly became much faster and started landing hits on Naruto. What Sasuke didn't know was that Naruto wasn't even trying to fight. Naruto was getting bored and opened the palm of his hand.

_I'm going to use that technique you showed me, _said Naruto.

"**Don't use it at its full power or else you might kill the kid," said Kyuubi.**

_Don't worry, I won't, _said Naruto.

Slowly, a tiny ball of chakra started to form on the palm of Naruto's hand. Different rings wrapped around it until it was the size of Naruto's entire palm.

"Rasengan!" shouted Naruto as he ran toward Sasuke.

Sasuke ran toward Naruto, thinking that the Rasengan was a minor technique. Kakashi appeared out of nowhere and tried to stop Naruto, but Naruto was running to fast. Then, Cressela stood before the two, grabbed each of their arms, spun around, and flung them away from each other.

_Wow, that girl's strong, _thought Kakashi.

Naruto's hand hit a nearby tree and sent the tree flying almost 20 feet away.

"Naruto, what were you thinking?! The Rasengan? You could've killed Sasuke! Don't ever try that again!" yelled Cressela.

"I'm sorry Sasuke," said Naruto.

"Don't talk to me, you're not important enough to talk to me," said Sasuke.

"Naruto, I take it back. You can use the Rasengan on him now," said Cressela.

"You shut up, too! You're his friend. Any friend of his is an enemy of mine," shouted the enraged Uchiha.

"Someone has anger problems," said Sakura, walking over to Naruto to help him onto his feet.

After Sakura, Neji, and Sasuke left, Kakashi went up to Naruto and said, "You were holding back, weren't you."

"Maybe, maybe not," said Naruto with a grin.

"And you," said Kakashi, "You threw them around like it was nothing."

"Yeah, I did," replied Cressela.

"Well, I need to get going," said Kakashi. He disappeared the same way Yugao did the day before.

"You have ANBU watching you?" asked Cressela.

"Yeah," said Naruto.

"You know the shadow clone technique, the Rasengan, and you have ANBU guards. You are full of surprises Naruto," said Cressela.

The two walked home together, and now Naruto has a new friend.


	4. Chapter 3

**This time I would like to say that I'm not bashing any Naruto characters. I hope you like this chapter. Please read my other story **_**Away From Konoha. **_**Please leave reviews.**

"Talking"

_Thinking or talking to Kyuubi_

"**Kyuubi"**

**Chapter 3**

**Team 7**

It has been 5 years since Naruto's first day at the Ninja Academy. Since then, Naruto and Cressela have become best friends. The rest of the class ended up becoming friends with Naruto as well, even Sasuke. Naruto easily passed the test to become a Genin. The Hokage forced Kakashi from his position as an ANBU member to a Jonin. For certain reasons, the Hokage assigned Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, and Cressela to the same squad, Squad 7, which was supposed to be led by Kakashi.

"Where is he?" asked Sakura.

"If I know him as well as I do, he's not gonna be here for another hour," said Naruto.

"All the other squads were taken by their leaders 2 hours ago!" shouted Sakura.

"Calm down. He just got here. I can sense him," said Cressela.

A few seconds passed before a silvery-haired man entered the room. "It looks like I'm a little late."

"Yeah, just a little bit," said Cressela sarcastically.

"Everyone, meet me on the rooftop," said Kakashi. He immediately left. Once everyone was on the roof, he said, "I will choose one person to speak at a time. You will tell us your name, hobbies, likes, dislikes, and dreams. Pinky, you first."

Sakura stared at him with murderous intent when he called her Pinky. "My name is Sakura Haruno. My hobbies are…" she stared at Sasuke. "My likes are…" she stared at Sasuke and giggled. "My dislikes…" she stared plainly at Kakashi. "My dream is to become one of the best medical ninja and…" she stared at Sasuke again.

_Wow. Did the Hokage give me Sakura and the boy she likes just to bother me?, _thought Kakashi. "Uchiha kid, you're next."

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha," Sasuke said. "My hobbies are practicing ninjutsu and sparring. My likes…I have very few. My dislikes…I have a lot. My dream is to kill a certain person."

_I hope he means his brother and not Naruto, _thought Kakashi. "Fox, it's your turn."

"I thought I told you not to call me that!" yelled Naruto. "Whatever. My name is Naruto Uzumaki. My hobby is to practice my shadow clone techniques. My likes are ramen and my friends. My dislikes are people who call me Fox and people who hurt me because I hold the Nine-Tailed Fox. My dream is to become the Hokage."

_He's changed a lot. He seems…happier, _thought Kakashi. "And now you, purple eyes."

"My name is Cressela Hekkeitaki. My hobbies are making origami and trying to find different ways of using elemental chakra without performing hand signs. My likes are books and designing different jutsus. My dislikes are people who keep others waiting for hours," she said staring at him, "and people who make fun of me for having violet eyes. My dream is to become a member of the ANBU Black Ops."

_Testing different jutsus? Is this girl crazy? She could get killed by doing that, _thought Kakashi.

"Well, what about you?" asked Sakura.

"Oh yeah, well, my name's Kakashi Hatake. I have a lot of hobbies. My likes and dislikes are none of your business. My dreams are for me to know and for you to never find out," said Kakashi.

"Hey, that isn't fair! We told you about ourselves!" shouted Sakura.

"Give up. He's not gonna say more than what he told us," said Naruto.

"I guess that's it. Meet me at the training field tomorrow at around 9 o'clock," said Kakashi.

"What are we going to do at the training field?" asked Naruto.

"You're going to fight me," said Kakashi. Everyone looked up. "The truth is, only about 60% of the people who graduated the academy test fail the training session that we are doing tomorrow. Only 10 student actually get to graduate and become part of a team."

"Wow, that's a small amount," said Cressela.

"Yes it is. Now meet me at the field tomorrow. I almost forgot. Don't eat breakfast. I don't want you guys to get stomach cramps while fighting." And with that, Kakashi disappeared.

Just when Sakura and Sasuke were about to leave, Naruto and Cressela shouted, "Wait!"

"What? I really need to get going," said Sakura.

"Tomorrow, eat breakfast. I don't care what Kakashi says. He's going to be late tomorrow. We're just gonna end up starving ourselves and fainting on the field," said Naruto.

"Ok," said Sakura.

Each of them said their goodbyes and left to do whatever they wanted to do for the rest of the day. The next day, they each ate a balanced breakfast and went to the training field.

"Where is he? It's been 2 hours already," said Sasuke.

"It's a good thing that you told us to eat before coming here," said Sakura.

Then Kakashi appeared, reading Icha Icha Paradise. "Hey guys, you got here early."

"No, you got here late," said Cressela.

"Whatever," said Kakashi. He placed a timer on a stump nearby. "Each of you has to grab a bell from me before sunset or you'll get sent back to the academy. You will get your lunch when I decide. If any of you try to steal the food before lunchtime, I'm gonna tie you up to a stump and you will be sent back to the academy."

"You only have two bells. Does that mean two of us are going to be sent back?" asked Cressela.

"Yes," said Kakashi.

"Well, let's not waste any time," said Naruto.

Kakashi started the timer and said, "Begin."

Everyone ran out of sight to devise a plan to get one of the bells. Naruto and Cressela sat back to back behind a few bushes.

"You know what this survival test is about, right?" asked Naruto.

"Of course, it's all about teamwork," said Cressela.

"Exactly. I need you to find Sakura and Sasuke, tell them what the test is about, and then bring them back here. I'll distract Kakashi for a little bit," said Naruto.

"Ok," said Cressela before disappearing.

Naruto ran out of the bushes and went toward Kakashi.

_Looks like one of them finally has the courage to fight me, _thought Kakashi.

Naruto ran up to Kakashi and ran to his side. Kakashi attempted to sweep kick him, but failed when Naruto jumped in the air and kicked Kakashi in the face. Sadly, that was only a shadow clone. Suddenly, Kakashi's hand came out of the ground and grabbed Naruto's leg. Then, Naruto disappeared and was replaced by a log.

_A substitution jutsu…, _thought Kakashi.

Kakashi reappeared out of the ground.

_Naruto, I got them, _said Cressela.

_Stop it. I hate it when you do that, _said Naruto.

Naruto ran toward the trees where he wouldn't be seen crossing to the area where the group was.

"Cressela, don't ever talk to me through thoughts again. It feels so weird," said Naruto.

"We need to come up with a plan, and soon," said Cressela.

Naruto and Cressela discussed a very elaborate plan. They talked over a couple of ways so that all of them could stay on the team.

"So we all understand the plan?" asked Cressela.

"Yes," said everyone.

"Try to see if Kakashi has any barriers around his mind," said Naruto.

"Barriers?" said Sakura.

"There are very few people in the world who have the ability to enter someone's thoughts. Cressela and I are part of that lucky few, but I don't have as much experience in mind tampering while Cressela does. Certain people can also create mental barriers that block people from reading their minds. She'll try to see if she can either access Kakashi's mind easily or break a mental barrier," explained Naruto.

Cressela focused all her thoughts and accessed the outer chamber of Kakashi's mind. To her surprise, there was no barrier. She walked forward and entered Kakashi's main thoughts. She saw everything that Kakashi was planning to do when each came out of hiding.

"Ok, I'm done. Sakura, if you see Sasuke dying on the floor, it's a genjutsu. Sasuke, if you try to use any trap, he'll use a substitution jutsu. Naruto, if you see a bell on the floor, please do not pick it up," said Cressela.

"Lunchtime!" shouted Kakashi.

Everyone left their hiding place and ate lunch.

"Alright, this is your last chance to get the bells. Begin."

Everyone separated to start the plan. Sasuke ran up to Kakashi and started to randomly kick and punch, just as a distraction. Kakashi was able to deflect the blows with ease. Then Sakura came up and tried to perform a minor genjutsu.

"Illusion Bell Needles!" shouted Sakura. Small bells shot out of the ground and started to ring. The multiple sounds affected a part of Kakashi's brain, causing him to see multiple copies of Sakura.

"Now Naruto!" shouted Cressela.

Naruto grabbed Cressela by the legs, spun her around, and then threw her at the direction of Kakashi.

"Fire Style: Rasenkaton!" shouted Cressela. A Rasengan formed on the palm of her hand. Then, blades of fire grinded around it, making it turn from blue to fiery red. The sound of it sounded like blades scratching metal. Cressela was still in the air when she flew in front of Kakashi. She then forced her hand into Kakashi's back. The Rasenkaton then expanded into a fiery blaze which blew Kakashi away and made him pass out.

"Did I kill him?" asked Cressela.

"Looks like those elemental jutsu fusions were worth something after all," said Naruto.

An hour later, Kakashi woke up in the hospital. "What happened?" asked Kakashi groggily.

"The doctors said we almost killed you," said Sakura.

"Did you guys get the bells?" asked Kakashi.

Sakura and Sasuke held up one bell together while Cressela and Naruto held up the other one.

"We grabbed each bell together. Now you have to pass all of us," said Sasuke.

"You're right. I would have to pass you guys anyway considering how well you all worked together. And you two," he said pointing to Cressela and Naruto. "You guys finished what the Fourth Hokage tried to complete with the Rasengan by combining elemental chakra with the regular Rasengan. If you ever try to do that again, I will disable your arms. Combining elemental chakra with that much condensed energy can blow your arm off."

"Ok," said Cressela.

"Well, I guess you all pass," said Kakashi.

Everyone went out to celebrate at Ichiraku's after the doctors said it was ok for Kakashi to leave the hospital.

"Well, I guess we're officially ninjas," said Cressela.

"Yeah, I need to get some sleep. I'm tired after all we went through today," said Naruto.

"Me too," said Sakura.

"I need to wake up early tomorrow, so I'm going home," said Sasuke.

Everyone went to sleep.


	5. Chapter 4

**Hey!!! I'm so sorry for taking a really long time for writing this chapter. Thanks everyone for all the nice reviews. This is my 4****th**** chapter. Please read my other story **_**Away From Konoha. **_**Please leave reviews.**

"Talking"

_Thinking_

"**Kyuubi"**

**Chapter 4**

**An Old Friend**

Since the day Team 7 formed, they have been doing nothing but regular household chores for people around the village. Nothing exciting ever happened to them, except when Naruto was dragged into a mine field by a dog. They finally came back from their most recent mission, finding a lost cat.

"Now your next mission is to babysit an elder's grandson, shopping in the next village, and help with the potato digging," said the Hokage as they came back from their mission.

"No thank you!" shouted Naruto. "I want a, you know, more exciting mission. Find us a better one."

_I agree, _thought Sasuke.

_He's so annoying, _thought Sakura.

_I knew this was going to happen sooner or later, _thought Kakashi.

_I wonder what would happen if you cross two chakra elements between two people, _thought Cressela, completely oblivious to all that was happening.

"Naruto!" shouted Iruka from behind him. "All new teams start off with simpler missions. That's just the way it is."

"Let me explain. Every day, Konoha receives numerous requests from babysitting to assassinations. Each request is then written down on a list marked as A, B, C, or D. A missions are given the Jounin, B missions are given to Chuunin, C missions are given to both Genin and Chuunin, and D missions are given to Genin," explained the old man. "Since you four just became Genin, D missions are perfect for you."

"But I don't want to do all that boring work," complained Naruto.

"Fine, I'll settle with you. I'll give you guys a C mission. It's a protection mission of a certain individual," said the Hokage. "Tazuna, get in here."

A drunken old man wearing a straw hat and holding a bottle of sake walked into the room. "What's this? They're a bunch of brats, especially the blonde one with the stupid face."

_Jerk, _thought Cressela.

_Whatever, I've heard worse, _thought Naruto.

"You will be escorted to the Land of Waves by these exceptional children," said the Hokage with a smile.

"Exceptional? Are you sure these brats can protect me?" asked Tazuna.

"They're better than most ninja in the village, and if anything, I'll protect you on our way to the Land of Waves," said Kakashi.

_He thinks he's better than us doesn't he?_ said Cressela.

_What did I say about mind contact?_ said Naruto.

_Get used to it. We're gonna have to use it if we get separated somehow, _said Cressela.

_Whatever, _said Naruto.

"Well, I guess that's it. Get ready for your mission. You will meet at the gate at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow," said the Hokage.

With that, they all left and got ready for the next day. They all slept early and woke at the crack of dawn. They all made it to the gate except for Kakashi.

"He's late again," said Sakura.

"Naruto, have you seen the way Hinata looks at you?" asked Cressela.

"Wow, that was random, but no, why?" asked Naruto.

"Oh, it's nothing," said Cressela with a giggle. _He doesn't notice anything does he..., _she thought. Cressela walked away from the group and sat with her back to a tree. She had felt very uneasy because she had stayed up the entire night while in the hospital waiting to see her seriously ill father. She closed her eyes and let sleep overcome her thoughts. She woke to the sound of Sakura telling her to wake up.

"Hey, Cressela, wake up! Kakashi is here," said Sakura in attempt to wake Cressela.

"Hm? He's here?! How long have I been asleep?" asked Cressela.

"About an hour," responded Sakura.

_Wow, Kakashi is really late, _thought Cressela.

"Hey guys," said the masked man. He was holding up his copy of Icha Icha Paradise, not even bothering to look up at the angry Genins' faces. "I guess we have to go now."

"We were supposed to leave two hours ago! What kind of idiotic ninjas are you?!" complained Tazuna.

"Calm down old man," said Naruto flashing his teeth. _This is going to be our first real mission!_

"Alright, let's go," said Kakashi. _This is going to be a disaster._

The group started and left the village. They kept walking until they reached the edge of the forest surrounding Konoha. Cressela reached in her bag and pulled out her copy of _Limits of Elemental Chakra. _

"You've read that book like eight times," said Naruto.

"I know, but if I'm ever going to create new moves- like the Rasenkaton- I need to memorize this book page-by-page," Cressela replied. She quickly opened her book to chapter five: _Elemental Control in High Altitudes._

"We're almost to the bridge, I think," said Tazuna.

"How do we classify this as a C-rank mission if we don't even get to fight anyone?" asked Sasuke.

Two figures appeared before the group; one holding a large guillotine sword; the other wearing a mask.

"I think you spoke too soon," said Sakura.

"We are here for the bridge builder," said the man with the guillotine sword.

"Well, if it isn't Zabuza Momochi," said Kakashi.

"Ah, I finally have the chance to meet the Copy Ninja, Kakashi Hatake."

Then the other person spoke. "I see they sent a group of Genin to protect Tazuna."

Cressela, still reading her book, thought, _I know that voice. _"Haku?" She quickly put her book away.

"Cressela, is that you?" asked Haku. He took off his mask to reveal his feminine face.

"It's been a while since I've seen you."

Zabuza, completely ignoring the conversation between Cressela and Haku, ran and tried to attack Kakashi.

"Zabuza, don't hurt them!" yelled Haku.

"What do you mean? We're being paid to do this."

"Don't do it. I'll explain later."

"Hm…Ok, but it better be a good reason."

A few hours later, all of the group, including Zabuza and Haku, were eating in Tazuna's home.

"So let me get this straight…you and this girl over here, know each other because she was in the same village you were living in. When you killed your parents, she helped you sneak out of the village. And, because she helped you escape, she had to leave the village or else she and her family would've been killed," said Zabuza.

"Yep," said Cressela.

"But there's still something that bothers me…"

"What?" asked Haku.

"Are you two still being hunted by the village?"

"I don't know…"

"Unfortunately, yes, we are still being hunted down," said Cressela.

"Really?" asked Haku.

"Yes. A year ago, they attacked my parents when we were living in Iwagakure. My mom was ok, but my dad ended up getting stabbed by a poison barb. We came to Konohagakure so we could find Lady Tsunade so she could heal him."

"I see…well, do you know who they sent to hunt us down?"

"They sent Nayato and Shira."

"T-They sent _them_?! If they find us, we're going to die!"

"Calm down. If I was able to evade them for five years, so can you."

"But if they do find us, we're dead for sure! Those two are more dangerous than all Konoha ANBU members combined!"

"Seriously?" asked Naruto.

"He's exaggerating, but they are about as strong as a Jonin," replied Cressela.

"How have you been able to evade them for five years in Konoha?" asked Zabuza, actually becoming interested in the conversation.

"When we were being attacked in Iwagakure…I kinda faked my death." She casted her violet eyes down.

"Faked your death?" said Kakashi, joining the conversation.

"Yeah. While they were fighting me and my mom, I took a poison barb and drained it of all the poison. I took the barn and stabbed my hand with it. When Nayato and Shira saw the barb stuck in my hand, they thought that they hit me with it, so they left us alone, thinking I was going to die."

"That's clever," replied Kakashi.

"Your mom was fighting, too?" asked Haku. "I thought she couldn't move her arms after…the accident."

"Apparently, she can," replied Cressela.

"What accident is Haku talking about?" asked Sakura.

"That's a story for another day. It's really late and I'm getting tired. We should all get some sleep."

They all laid themselves down to sleep.


	6. Chapter 5

**Hey guys! Thanks for the nice reviews****J****. This is my fifth chapter. Hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto characters (even though I wish I did ********)**

**Chapter 5**

**Secrets**

"Good morning!" shouted Naruto as he entered the room. Everyone was eating breakfast, except for Cressela, who wasn't in the room. "Where's Cressela?"

"She's outside. She told us that she wasn't feeling too good," replied Sasuke.

Naruto immediately ran outside to find Cressela sitting on the ground, writing in a book. As Naruto got closer, he could see tears dripping onto the pages. "Are you crying?"

"Shut up." Cressela closed the book and stood up. Her eyes were red and puffy. Her glance shot upward, looking straight into Naruto's eyes. Her cold, merciless eyes burned deep into Naruto until he was forced to look away.

"What's wrong?" Naruto didn't bother looking back due to the fear of her dark and deadly gaze.

"What's wrong? A better question would be 'What isn't wrong?' The village sent a letter here saying that my father died three days ago. He died while we were still in the village! No one told me anything!"

"I-I'm so sorry…"

She took a couple of deep breaths before saying, "No, it's ok. I should be saying sorry for yelling at you. I'm just mad that no one, not even my mother, told me that he died…"

Naruto walked up to her and hugged her. Cressela's head rested on his shoulder. Tears slowly ran down her face and onto Naruto's shirt. Cressela backed away and trudged back to Tazuna's house. Naruto soon followed. They entered the house and sat down to eat breakfast.

"Cressela, what's wrong?" asked Haku.

"My dad died."

"I'm so sorry. Is there anything I-"

"No," said Cressela, cutting off Haku.

"Alright, now tell me. Who hired you two to kill Tazuna?" asked Kakashi.

"I don't know the guy's name. He was very...um, strange. He was part plant," replied Zabuza.

"Part plant?" _Zetsu, _thought Kakashi. "Did the guy tell you why he wanted you to kill Tazuna?"

"No, but I overheard a conversation between the plant guy and this weird dude wearing an orange mask. They said something about assassinations all throughout the villages. By doing this, they said that they would be able to start a Fourth Great Shinobi War."

"What?!" exclaimed Sakura.

"If they're going to kill one important person in each village, then war is upon us," said Cressela in a monotonic tone. "This plant person, by any chance, does he go by the name of Zetsu?"

"Yeah! I remember the guy wearing the mask calling him Zetsu, but…how did you know his name?"

"He's a friend of Nayato and Shira. He taught them how to use plants as weapons. He is also a member of the Akatsuki."

"You know about the Akatsuki?" asked Kakashi.

"Unfortunately, yes. Naruto and I had fought a person named Kisame Hoshigaki a couple of years ago. That's when we were testing the Rasenkaton."

"You two fought Kisame and lived?" asked Zabuza.

"Yes. He said something about his leader wanting to capture all the Tailed Beasts," said Naruto. "Kisame tried to capture me, but we fought him long enough to get him tired. After that, he escaped before ANBU came."

"Was a person with black hair and red eyes with Kisame?" asked Sasuke.

"Yeah, but I didn't hear his name," said Cressela.

_Itachi, _thought Sasuke.

"I heard that a guy with red eyes betrayed the village by stealing a scroll that showed where all the Jinchūriki were five years ago. His name was…Itachi or something like that. Is that the guy you're talking about Sasuke?" asked Naruto.

Sasuke looked up with a murderous intent in his eyes. "Yes."

"Let's not talk about that now," said Kakashi, staring into Sasuke's burning eyes.

"Is there anything else that you heard from Zetsu?" asked Cressela.

"They said something about meeting their leader somewhere near here," said Haku.

"Do you know where?"

"Not too far from here, actually," said Zabuza.

"Should we surprise attack?"

"We have to send for reinforcements," said Kakashi.

"No worries," said Naruto. "Yugao!"

Suddenly, Yugao appeared in a puff of smoke, the same way she appeared each time Naruto called her. "Yes?"

Everyone was wide-eyed except for Naruto, Cressela, and Kakashi. "Call for a few ANBU members. We are going to surprise attack the Akatsuki lair tomorrow."

"Hey, I'm the leader. I say when we attack," said Kakashi with a little anger in his voice.

"Not today," said Cressela.

"What do you mean?"

"We're taking command as of now," said Naruto.

"And who gave you this authority?"

"The same person that stuck me and Naruto on your squad," said Cressela. "Now, are you going to explain why the Hokage put the best people who graduated from the Ninja Academy on your squad?"

"Sasuke, Sakura," started Kakashi, "the Hokage put you four together because you four were possible candidates to become ANBU members. He wanted me, a former ANBU Black Ops member, to see if you guys had what it takes."

Sasuke and Sakura wore shocked expressions on their faces. "What?!"

"Now, how did you two find out," asked Kakashi.

"The Hokage told us, of course," said Cressela.

"Why?"

"Because we were already ANBU candidates when we were 9 years old," explained Naruto.

"How?"

"You ask too many questions," said Cressela.

"Yugao, before you leave," started Naruto, "take this to the Hokage." He pulled out a scroll from his bag and handed it to Yugao. "It explains which ANBU operatives are to be on this mission and what weapons they should bring with them."

"Is that all you need me to do?" asked Yugao.

"Tell my mother," said Cressela, "that I forgive her for not telling me about my father."

"Now go before it's too late," said Naruto.

"I'll be back," said Yugao. Within a matter of seconds, Yugao disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Let's make a battle plan for tomorrow," said Cressela.

Sakura and Sasuke were dazed by all they had heard and all that they were about to hear. They discussed a very elaborate battle plan for hours. They had to take into account of the ANBU operatives that would soon be joining them in the battle. After the very long discussion, they had lunch. After lunch, Naruto and Cressela stepped outside.

"You need to perfect that move today if we're going to have any chance of winning this fight," said Cressela.

"I know, so let's practice," Naruto replied.

Naruto and Cressela practiced in the scorching heat of the afternoon sun until darkness filled the sky. They practice under the moon and the stars. Only moonbeams and twilight shone through to let them see.

"You almost perfected it," said Cressela, not even seemingly tired.

"Almost isn't good enough," muttered Naruto. A glowing sphere on the palm of his hand shone brightly. Wind surged around it as if the sphere were a black hole, sucking in everything in its path.

"Just keep trying."

"Did it take you this long to make the Rasenkaton?"

"It took up much more time, now try again!"

They practice until ANBU members crept up on them in the dead of night. Three ANBU members were recognizable: Yugao, Towa, and Komachi. The other two weren't.

"I see you're still practicing that impossible move," said Komachi. She looked up at the moon and then back to Naruto. "Try to get some sleep. Maybe you'll be able to do it after some rest."

"Ok, goodnight everyone," said Naruto and Cressela. They went back to Tazuna's house and quickly fell asleep.


	7. Chapter 6

**Hey!!! It's me! Thanks for reading my last chapter. I hoped you liked it! This is my 6****th**** chapter. I hope you like it! If you're going to leave a review, please, no flaming. For that certain person, you know I'm talking to you! I'm kidding. I hope you like it, too.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto characters**

**Chapter 6  
****A Battle to Remember**

It is morning. The battle begins…

Everyone was awake a Tazuna's house, preparing for battle.

"Tazuna, what do you think you're doing?" asked Sakura.

"I'm getting ready for battle," he said plainly.

"I'm sorry, but it's going to be too dangerous for you," said Yugao.

"But…"

"No, you can't go," said Cressela.

Naruto ran inside. He was drenched in sweat. He wore a huge grin that stretched across his face. "I perfected it!"

"Good. Now we might actually have a chance of winning," said Cressela.

"When are we attacking?"

"We sent Komachi and Towa to see if they had set any traps. When they get back, we attack. If they don't come back by midday, we search for them."

Suddenly, Komachi and Towa warped out of the floor.

"Wow, nice entrance," said Naruto.

"We took care of all the traps. I'm not sure, but, it felt like someone was watching us," said Komachi.

"Watching you?" asked Cressela.

"This isn't good," said Naruto. He looked around the room frantically. "Everyone, get out!"

As soon as he said that, everyone ran out of the house as fast as they could. Naruto and Cressela grabbed as many weapons as they could before exiting the house. The minute they left, parts of the house were being covered with vines. A giant venus fly trap grew out of the floor. It opened up to reveal a man. One side of him was white while the other was black.

"**How did these morons sense us?" said the black side.**

"_I do not know. Maybe it was one of the ANBU members," said the white side._

"Zetsu," said Kakashi.

"_Oh look, it's the Copy Ninja, Kakashi Hatake."_

"**And there's the Nine-Tailed Fox brat. The leader will be pleased to hear of his presence."**

Cressela ran up to Zetsu and attempted to roundhouse kick him. Zetsu blocked the kick using only a finger.

"What the…" said Cressela.

"Don't try to fight him. He'll just block your moves. He's only part of the Akatsuki to clean up their messes," said Yugao.

"**Go to hell."**

"The rest of you, run. I'll hold him…um, them off."

"But what about you?" asked Cressela in a concerned tone.

"Don't worry, just go!"

The rest of the group ran off toward the Akatsuki hideout. Naruto looked behind him and shed a tear. Yugao had been with him throughout his entire life. She had been like a mother to him. He wasn't ready to lose her, but he knew he couldn't go back there or else he would distract Yugao.

"**You were very foolish to fight us alone."**

"_Very foolish, indeed."_

Yugao unsheathed her katana and said, "The ground will run with your blood today."

The rest of the group was still running ahead. Naruto and Cressela were communicating through their thoughts.

_I don't want to leave her back there, _said Naruto.

_I know, but if we went back, we'd only get in her way, _responded Cressela.

Soon, they came into a clearing. No one was seen anywhere.

"Komachi, where is the lair?" asked Kakashi.

"Under our feet," she responded. She walked to the middle of the clearing and plucked a single flower out of the ground. As soon as she did, a giant, gaping hole opened up in front of Komachi. "So, who would like to go first?"

Everyone dived into the hole. The inside looked like a tunnel. There were many stalactites plunging out of the mouth of the entrance. They walked forward cautiously, being careful not to step in any new traps. They continued until they walked into an open area. No one was there either…or at least that's what they thought.

"Komachi, Towa," said Naruto, "did you bother checking of they were actually here?"

"They were, we sensed them," said Towa frantically.

"Cressela, you know what to do," said Naruto.

Cressela focused on her inner thoughts and then let her mind branch out, reading the minds of every living thing that her thoughts came across. She suddenly bumped into a mental block. "Someone's here!"

"Show yourselves!" shouted one of the ANBU operatives.

"Hahaha, very good. You sensed us. That takes a lot of skill," said a figure protruding from one of the back walls. He had skin that looked like the color of a stone. His mouth was covered by a cloth. His headband had the Takigakure sign on it with a slash across the emblem.

"Kakuzu," said Cressela.

"You know him?" asked Naruto.

"I'm from Takigakure, remember? He betrayed our village a hundred years ago. I've met him once."

"One hundred years?!" exclaimed Sakura.

"Yeah. The reason he's still alive is because he steals hearts. The more hearts he has, the longer he lives."

"Wow," said Naruto.

"You know my partner? You're a lucky mother fucker to have survived that meeting," said a man appearing in front of Cressela. He had white hair and had a Yugakure headband. It was also slashed across the emblem. What scared Cressela about him was the humongous three-bladed scythe he was carrying. "You've got really fucked up eyes, ya know."

"Gee thanks," said Cressela sarcastically.

"Don't get sarcastic with me bitch!"

"Hidan, calm down," said Kakuzu.

It was already too late. After hearing that, Cressela flexed her knuckles, opened her hand, and quickly made her best jutsu: the Rasenkaton. "Die!" She forced the flaming orb into Hidan's stomach. The force of the jutsu made Hidan fly all the way to the back of the cave.

Hidan slowly stood…laughing. His eerie laugh sent chills down everyone's spines. "HAHAHA! You thought you could kill me?! I can never die as long as I am the servant of Jashin!"

"Not with the religious crap again. Hidan, please don't," said Kakuzu.

"Shut the fuck up! You don't understand because you are so consumed in your greed."

"Kakashi and you two," Naruto said pointing to the other two ANBU operatives, "fight Hidan. Cressela, Sasuke, Sakura, and I will take on Kakuzu."

As soon as Kakuzu took one step, the group ran toward him, using every possible jutsu they knew. When Hidan moved, the other group attacked without mercy.

"They think a bunch of kids can defeat me?" said Kakuzu.

"Be careful. He can disembody himself because of his Earth Grudge Fear," said Cressela.

"His what?" asked Sasuke.

"He has many thick, grey threads woven under his skin holding his body together."

"Like a rag doll?" commented Sakura.

"That's one way to put it."

Kakuzu unattached his arm and sent it flying toward Naruto. Naruto dodged it and grabbed the arm. _Fine, you want to fight? You'll be dead in a half-hour, _thought Kakuzu. The threads connecting the disembodied arm to Kakuzu started retreating back into him, dragging Naruto, who was still holding onto the arm.

"Naruto, let go!" shouted Sasuke.

It was too late. Naruto was close enough for Kakuzu to punch. While Naruto was punched in the face, he disappeared in a puff of smoke. "A clone? Why was I able to feel the punch?"

"Shadow clones," said Naruto, holding a knife to Kakuzu's neck. Naruto tried to cut into his flesh, but he ended up bending his kunai. "What the…"

Kakuzu grabbed Naruto's neck and threw him across the room. Sasuke activated his Sharingan. Three tomoe appeared in his blood-red eyes. Slowly, electricity started to form and spark in his hand. It grew bigger until Sasuke shouted, "Chidori!" He ran to Kakuzu and plunged the electric mass into his opponent. When he pulled his hand out, he was holding one of Kakuzu's five hearts.

One down. Four to go.

"How did you…" started Kakuzu.

"Your jutsu was of the earth type, right? I used a lightning type jutsu. Lightning types can disrupt earth jutsus," explained Sasuke.

Kakuzu punched Sasuke in the stomach and sent him flying the same way he did to Naruto. Sakura had already healed Naruto. She ran to Sasuke and performed many difficult-to-remember hand signs and healed him. Cressela opened the palm of her hand and created another Rasenkaton.

"Another one? You really think that's going to affect me?" mocked Kakuzu.

"No, but this might," said Cressela. The Rasenkaton started growing bigger. She placed her second hand around the other side of the flaming Rasengan. It grew bigger until it was bigger than Cressela, herself. "Fire style: Great Rasenkaton of Death!" She threw the giant flaming orb at Kakuzu. As soon as one side touched him, he was engulfed in the orb of flames.

Two more down. Two to go.

"What kind of children are you?" said Kakuzu, recovering from the deadly attack.

"You're worst nightmare," said Naruto, holding a bright Rasengan. He threw it at Kakuzu. Kakuzu easily dodged it.

"Nope, you're not gonna get me again with that," he said. In a matter of seconds, two clones shot up from the ground and held down Kakuzu. "What the…!"

Naruto formed another Rasengan. This one was different. It had an eerie glow around it. It slowly grew and even the ground shook at its immense power. The wind spun and oxygen slowly deteriorated from the air. "Wind style: Rasenshuriken!" Naruto ran at Kakuzu and pressed the all-powerful Rasengan against Kakuzu's body. The force was so strong, that it ripped a hole through Kakuzu's stomach. Surprisingly, no organs were in there; only the grey threads that ran through his entire body.

Two down. No more to go.

Kakuzu fell to the floor with a thud.

Naruto looked over and saw Kakashi decapitate Hidan. "Ewww."

"Hahaha! You can't kill me. I told you that. Stupid bitch!" shouted Hidan.

"No, we can't kill you, but we can bury you," said Towa. One of the ANBU members had already dug a hole for both the head and the body. "Goodbye." They shoveled the dirt back into the hole.

"I guess that was a waste," said Naruto. "No one else was here."

"At least we were able to kill three Akatsuki members," said Yugao, entering the cave.

"Yugao, you're alive!" shouted Naruto with joy.

"Of course. You thought I was going to die?"

"No, but there are possibilities," said Naruto sarcastically.

"Alright, let's go," shouted Kakashi.

"Where's Cressela?" asked Sakura.

"Cressela? Cressela!" Naruto shouted, calling out for his comrade. "Cressela!!! CRESSELA!!!"

"She's…gone," said Sasuke with a hint of sadness in his voice.

"No, she can't be! Cressela!!!!" cried Naruto frantically. "No, no, no…" Naruto started to cry. Many tears ran down his cheeks. "She's gone…"


	8. Chapter 7

**Hey guys!!!I hope you liked my last chapter. This is going to be my 7****th**** chapter. I hope you like it! =) Please leave reviews =)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto characters**

**Chapter 7**

**The Funeral**

The entire crowd wore only black. Many people were crying and mourning for Komachi, who died fighting Hidan, and for Cressela, who was never to be seen again after helping defeat Kakuzu.

"I can't believe she's gone," said Yugao. "And Cressela, too."

"Naruto? Are you ok?" asked Sasuke.

"Since when do you care how I feel?" responded Naruto bitterly.

"Since the day we became friends."

Naruto looked up, his eyes red from crying. "She's gone. No one knows where she went or if she's alive at all." More tears started to swell up in his eyes. "She was my best friend. Cressela was like a sister to me. I have no family, and she was the closest thing to a family member to me."

Yugao walked up to the crying boy and put her hand on his shoulder. "We'll find her. Don't worry."

A woman appeared from out of the crowd and walked straight to Naruto. Her face was pale and dripping from tears. She knelt down so she could face Naruto. "The ANBU Black Ops is doing the best they can to find her. I just hope she didn't run away because we didn't tell her of my husband's death…" Her eyes started to swell up with tears as soon as she mentioned her husband. "You and my daughter were best friends and I always considered you as part of my family. You are welcome to come live with me if you'd like."

"Thank you, Kimiko, but ANBU wants me to live in secret after the surprise attack in fear of the Akatsuki wanting to take revenge on the village," said Naruto.

Kimiko was asked to stand near the coffin of Komachi. A picture of both Cressela and Komachi were put on a stand in front of the coffin.

"We are ready to start the eulogy…err, I mean eulogies," said the Third Hokage as he stepped on a leveled platform that put the coffin in plain view for all to see.

Yugao walked onto the platform. "Thank you all for coming today on this day of great sorrow. We would like to honor two great heroes that fought in order to protect the peace of Konohagakure. Their names were Komachi Keikkanta and Cressela Hekkeitaki. They fought with all their strength and succeeded in protecting our home. We would like to start with Komachi's eulogy."

Many people went up and said many kind things about Komachi. Even a few ANBU members stood on the stand and spoke. When no one else went up to speak, the Hokage stood back on the stand and said, "We are now ready to start the eulogy for Cressela. Before anyone comes up, I would like to say some words."

Everyone was puzzled when the Hokage said he would be giving a eulogy.

"Cressela was a brilliant young girl. Her wisdom was admired by even the most strategic ninja in our village. She showed her kindness every day to everyone she met. All the people she met are probably mourning for her, even though they didn't know who she really was. Then again, she was very closed off to the rest of the world when it came to being herself. Memories of her love and kindness will always be in our hearts." The Hokage stepped off the platform.

Sakura got up from her seat and walked onto the platform. Her eyes were a paler shade of green than they usually were. "Cressela was a great person. She was very kind and very loving. Because of her, I am who I am today. I used to dislike certain people for no reason whatsoever. Then, one day, our sensei, Iruka, said that we were going to have a new student in our class. Cressela walked in and introduced herself. She was the envy of all the girls," she said with a chuckle. "She went to the back of the classroom and sat next to the least-liked person in the entire village. Right then and there, she befriended him. When we got out of class people confronted her, saying that she made a big mistake befriending the person. When she asked why no one liked him, no one could give her a valid answer. She said to them 'If you have no reason to hate this person, then why hate him? What did this person do to you?' After she confronted us, I had a new way of thinking. Now I know what they mean by 'Never judge a book by its cover.' Cressela, you always said how lucky you were to have us as friends, but you were wrong. We were the lucky ones to have you as a friend." With that, Sakura stepped off of the platform, crying.

Sasuke walked onto the platform. "Cressela was probably the best person I have ever met. She taught me how be kind to others and how to befriend others. She was the only person that ever treated me like a regular person, rather than the last Uchiha. She didn't care about my bloodline or anything like that. She saw me for who I was and for who I will become. She helped me to learn that no matter what anyone says about me, I am who I am and no one can change that." Sasuke walked off the platform, his eyes cast down to the floor.

Many more people went up and said kind words and how Cressela somehow changed their lives. Haku came to say some words about his friend. Even Kakashi went up to say a few words.

Then, it was Naruto's chance to go up. As he walked up, he thought of all the time that he and Cressela had spent together. He now was on the platform when he said, "Cressela was my best friend. She was the only person that believed in me. She was the only person that treated me like a person, instead of what some of you still treat me as."

Many people cast their heads down after Naruto said that.

"She was my first true friend. I used to think about how bad life could really get. I used to be afraid of making friends because of the pain you get when you lose them. I thought about how friendships never really seem to last. I used to think that by cutting yourself off from the world will keep you from getting hurt. She taught me how to enjoy life, instead of dreading the possibility of pain and misery. She taught me how we can forgive. Most importantly of all, she taught me how love. Although remembering her will always bring me pain, I choose never to forget the friendship she gave me. I will search for her, even if it means losing my life." The last line is what started to make people cry. Even the toughest ninja in the village couldn't help but cry. Naruto stepped down from the platform and went back to his seat.

The funeral lasted for about an hour more. People started to leave. Miles away, two people were standing in a very tall tree, obscured from the view of anyone at the funeral. One person was wearing an orange mask, while the other was wearing a red masquerade mask.

"I feel so bad leaving them like this," said the person in the red masquerade mask.

"I know how you feel. I had to leave my best friend by faking my death," said the man in the orange mask. "If you want to be strong enough to kill the men that killed your father, then follow me." He jumped off the branch and landed on the ground, on both feet. The girl soon followed the man away from the village

~~~~~5 years later~~~~~

"Naruto? What's wrong? Are you still mad that Pein killed Jiraya? You killed Pein. Stop crying about it." asked Sakura.

"It's not that," he responded, hiding a diary he was reading.

"Who's diary is that?"

"No one's. Just leave me alone."

"Ok," as Sakura walked behind Naruto, she snatched the diary from his hands and ran with it.

"Sakura, give it back!" barked Naruto. He ran after her, using as much energy as he could to catch up with her. _Those lessons with Tsunade made her fast, _he thought.

Sakura stopped running long enough to read who the diary belonged to. "Cressela Hekkeitaki?" A solemn expression fell upon her face. Naruto finally caught up with her. "Naruto, where did you get this?"

"Grandma Tsunade gave it to me today. The last page is why I'm in such a bad mood today," he responded. "Read page 197."

Sakura turned to the page. It read:

_Day: X_

_The day has come. We are going to invade the Akatsuki lair tomorrow. My mother just recently told me that my father died three days ago. I am so mad. I'm going to hunt down Nayato and Shira even if it means losing my life in the process. A guy named…_A teardrop smudged the name…_said that he would help me become strong enough to beat Nayato and Shira. He said that I would have to leave my village though…I'm not sure if I want to leave. I'll be leaving my friends and my mom, but if I kill Nayato and Shira, the guy said that I could go home. I don't know what to do. I'll decide tomorrow, after the battle…_The rest of the entry was smudged by tears.

"So she's hunting down the people who poisoned her father," said Sakura.

"One problem with that theory," said Naruto. "Nayato and Shira were killed three years ago. Their bodies were found mangled and burned."

"Burned? Do you think she used that move she created?"

"Probably, but, in the entry she said that once the two people were killed, she would return to the village."

"Hey! Naruto, Sakura!" shouted Sasuke, running down the street.

"What's up?" asked Naruto.

"There's been an infiltration. A woman wearing a black dress with a red mask killed two ninja when she entered the village. Tsunade wanted us to try and catch her."

"Alright, let's go." Naruto pulled out a fox mask from his bag and placed it on his face. Sakura pulled out a lion mask and put it on. Sasuke pulled out a raven mask and put that on, also.

The group ran down the streets, searching for the mystery assassin. They stopped in front of Kimiko's house when they saw a girl in a black dress standing in front of the house.

"Hey! Who the heck are you?" shouted Naruto.

"That's none of your business," said the girl. She turned around and on her face was a red mask. Her face went pale when she saw the group. _Why did they have to send ANBU?_

The three ninja charged toward the masked girl. The assassin easily dodged their attacks. She performed a few hand signs before shouting, "Earth style: Shadow Clone Entrapment!" Shadow clones started to shoot up from the ground. The clones grabbed Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto. The clones turned to stone and became part of the ground that they were standing on. "Now, let's see what's under that mask of yours." She walked up to Naruto and pulled off his mask. Her heart raced. Her face went paler. Her eyes shrunk. "Why aren't you trying to break free?"

Naruto looked her in the eyes. "Because if I do, then I would have to fight you, and I don't want to fight my best friend."

Her eyes widened. "H-How did you…"

"Your eyes. It's not very often that you see a pair of violet eyes."

A shadow could be seen approaching Cressela. "Don't even think about-"

It was too late. Yugao has knocked out Cressela.

"Yugao! What'd you do that for?" cried Naruto, being released from Cressela's jutsu, along with Sakura and Sasuke.

"We have to take her in for questioning. Do you know who this is?" asked Yugao.

"Yes. It's Cressela!"

A shocked expression found its way across Yugao's face as she took off her mask. "Cressela? So…Cressela is the…"

"The _what?_"

"The new leader of the Akatsuki."


	9. Chapter 8

**Hey guys! Thank you for the reviews on my last chapter. I hope you liked the twist at the end of that chapter. I also hope you like this one. Please leave reviews, including ones that suggest how I write the story because I need help for writing chapters.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto characters.**

**P.S. This chapter is mostly focused on Cressela for the time**

**Chapter 8**

**The Truth**

Cressela looked outside the window of the cell she had been contained in. She had been there for three days. She stopped eating after the first day, realizing that the food had drugs that ate away at her chakra supply. Naruto visited her a lot throughout the days that she had been imprisoned.

A few minutes passed before she could hear footsteps down the hall. _Naruto, _she thought. She stood from the iron cot and stood near the jail bars.

"I don't understand why you haven't escaped yet," said Naruto.

"As soon as I can get food that isn't drugged, I'll be able to break out," she replied, her violet eyes staring straight into the blonde's blue eyes. "I haven't seen you in such a long time," she said reminiscing the times that they were together. "Your hair is longer. Other than that, nothing's changed about you."

Naruto brushed his hair out of his face. "You've changed a lot, too. You mind telling me why you didn't come back to the village?"

"I made a choice and chose to follow it through all the way. I guess it wasn't the best choice anyone could've made, but it was good enough for me."

"You could've done so much better than joining the Akatsuki. You were chosen to join ANBU with me, Sakura, and Sasuke. I don't understand why you didn't come back after killing Nayato and Shira."

"How did you know I was coming back when I killed them?" Cressela asked suspiciously.

"I read your diary," Naruto responded casually.

"Oh…so you know who offered to help me kill them?"

"No, that part was smudged out. Who did help you kill them?"

"I'm not allowed to tell you. If you read the person's name in my diary, you would know already, but since it's smudged, I can't talk about it with you."

"Why not?"

Then, Cressela bended her hand back to show a mark on her wrist; it looked like the three tomoe in the Sharingan, but with the Japanese character for _fire_ in the middle.

"What's that?"

"This is a mark branded on each person that knows that guy that helped me kill Nayato and Shira. If I so much as try to tell you his fake name, the mark grows and spreads around my body and starts to slowly burn me. My blood turns to ashes. I honestly can't tell you anything."

"Are you still going back to this person?"

"I don't know. This mark binds me to him. I can't stay away or else I die." She stared directly into Naruto's solemn blue eyes. Tears found their way out of her eyes. As soon as she started crying, she couldn't stop. She even cried at the fact that she couldn't stop crying.

Naruto opened the prison cell. "Go. I can't stand to see you this way. Even if it means never seeing you again, just as long as you're safe I'll be alright."

"But, won't you get in trouble for-"

"Just go," Naruto said in a shaky voice. Tears rolled down his face as Cressela motioned towards him.

She gave him a hug before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

Cressela was walking down the street, and at that moment, Sakura appeared before her. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To buy a new mask and to go to my mother's house. So, how are you these days?" replied Cressela with a faint smile.

"I'm sorry Cressela, you're my friend but I have to take you back to your cell."

"Before you do," Cressela started, "can I at least say hi to my mom?"

"Fine, but I'll be accompanying you."

The two young women walked to Kimiko's house, talking and sharing things about their recent lives.

"I never would've guessed that you'd have such a hard life," said Sakura, sweeping her pink hair away from her eyes.

"I would've never guessed that you'd be training with a Sanin," replied Cressela.

They finally arrived to a large, stone house. In the front was a woman, sweeping the frontal area of the manor. The woman looked up and dropped her room at the sight of Cressela. "Cressela?" Kimiko managed to say.

"Hi mom," she replied.

Kimiko ran up to her daughter and embraced her with all the warmth and affection that she had been storing up for the day of her daughter's return. "I missed you…"

"That's all you can say?"

"I can say more, but let's just go inside."

The three went inside and stayed for about two hours before Sakura said, "I'm sorry but I have to take you back to your cell."

The second Sakura said that, Cressela disappeared.

Cressela was alone, walking through the streets once again. She stopped by a weapon shop and bought a mask that covered the lower half of her face. She continued walking until she reached the Hokage Mansion. She was able to slip pass the ninja guarding the mansion. She finally reached the Hokage's office and opened the door.

Sitting at her desk, was Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage. "Who are you? Can't you see I'm busy?"

Cressela removed her mask. "The Third was nicer than you. He would talk to me even if he had a lot of work to do."

"Cressela…why are you here?"

"You were the person that was supposed to heal my father. I just wanted to ask what _actually _killed him."

"What do you mean, _actually_? He died from the poison that Nayato and Shira stabbed him with. You know that."

"That's as much as I know, but there's more. He didn't die from the poison. I read about the poison they used and it's easily treated. What really happened?"

"I…"

"Tell me right now!" barked Cressela.

Tsunade glared up at her. The intensity in her eyes did not seem to faze Cressela. "Your father…was involved with people he shouldn't have been involved with. These people were very dangerous and highly elusive. We haven't been able to find them for a very long time. I can't tell you why, but one day, they sent an assassin to kill your father."

A tear leaked out of Cressela's eye. "T-Tsunade," Cressela managed to say, "if you don't tell me why my father was killed, I will…I will-"

"You'll what," said Tsunade with a threatening tone.

"Please, just tell me why!"

"They wanted to get to you."

"W-What?"

"They wanted to get to you because of your talent."

"What talent? I'm just a regular ninja."

"Really? What kind of Genin can create multiple elemental jutsu? What kind of Genin can help kill an Akatsuki member? What kind of a Genin is chosen to become an ANBU member at the age of 12?"

Cressela thought about it for a while and responded, "Naruto." With that, she walked away and left the mansion.

_Wow_, is all Tsunade could think as Cressela walked away.

An hour later, Naruto opened the door to his apartment. He walked inside and closed the door. As he walked towards his bed, he noticed a paper on his pillow. He picked it up and read it:

_Dear Naruto,_

_It's time for me to leave. I'm sorry that I couldn't say goodbye in person. It's great that we were able to see each other again. I wish I could stay here in the village, but you know why I can't. When I was gone, used to think that it would be better off not knowing you, because each time I thought of you only brought me pain. I would always tell myself to stop living in the past. Now I realize that living in the past was better; it was better because we were together. I miss the days that you and I, Sakura, and Sasuke were together. I miss when we would go on missions and when we would practice together. But what I miss the most is you. I hate not being with you and being forced away from you. You were always my best friend and I hope never to forget you. I miss seeing you laugh and smile. I miss the conversations we used to have. And lastly, I miss hating myself when I didn't tell you that, I love you. I've loved you even while I was gone and I always will love you. I slowly die each day without you. I hope you have a happy life and I miss you so much._

_Love,  
Cressela_


	10. Chapter 9

**Hey guys!!! Did you like my last chapter? I hope you did! If you did, please leave a review about it. This is my ninth chapter and I hope you like it. PLEASE LEAVE REVIEWS!!! Have a nice day!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto characters, only the characters that I made up.**

**Chapter 9**

**The Old Sage**

Naruto had packed up all of his belongings. He stepped outside and instantly became drenched due to the fact that it was raining that night. _I hope she isn't too far from the village, _thought Naruto as he wrapped himself in a long, dark cloak. He would need that cloak to leave the village unspotted.

He thought about what he was leaving behind as he trudged through the streets, being covered in the mud that had only just been formed moments ago. He would be leaving everything that he worked so hard to achieve. All of the friendships that he had finally been able to form would be destroyed. Once he left Konohagakure, no one would care if he was one of the best ninja that the Fire Country had ever seen. No one would care about who he was; the last of the Namikaze and Uzumaki clans; and a Jinchūriki, none the less.

He was finally at the gate. He had to make a decision right then and there. Was he really going to leave the village and follow his one true love? Or was he going to stay in the village and eventually regret his decision? It didn't take him very long to decide. He ran through the gates and kept running until he was deep in the forest, alone and cold.

"**Kid, are you sure this girl is worth it? I don't want you to die out here,"** **said Kyuubi.**

_You're only worried that you are going to die, and yes, she is worth more than anything I could think of,_ replied Naruto.

"**Whatever, just don't die," Kyuubi said bitterly.**

Naruto kept running until he reached an open clearing. It was drowned in water, making it look like a marsh. Naruto cleared his head of all of his thoughts. Then, he released his mind, letting it sense every living thing within a mile in each direction. _Cressela, where are you._ Then, suddenly, he reached human mind. It seemed like Cressela's mind, but some things were different; the desire to destroy; the immense amount of power and intellect; and lastly, the intense force of sadness and despair. Other than that, the mind was completely blocked off with a mental barrier.

Naruto focused his mind into a very destructive weapon. A weapon that was good enough to break through the mental shield. A large force of thoughts poured into Naruto's head, overwhelming his own thoughts. In the vast amount of knowledge and memories, he heard, _Naruto! _It was Cressela.

_Wait where you are. I'll be right there,_ Naruto responded.

Naruto sprinted across the open plain, being splashed with the murky liquid on the ground. He ran and ran and ran, with absolutely no intention of stopping. His muscles were overworked and he felt pain all over his body, but he wasn't going to stop until he found Cressela.

He reached a cave where he sensed Cressela's thoughts. Standing outside of the cave stood a shadowy figure, cloaked in a black hooded cloak. The figure pulled the hood down, showing Cressela's face. Naruto thought she looked more beautiful than any woman he had ever seen. Her face glowed because of the radiating moon and the raindrops reflecting the moon's glow. To Naruto, she looked like a Greek goddess, shining in all her glory. "Naruto," Cressela mouthed out.

Naruto ran up to her and kissed her. He put his hand on the small of her back. She put her arms around Naruto's neck. The caressed each other, both laughing and stumbling as they walked into the cave. In the cave was a roaring fire, crackling and burning. The fire warmed up Naruto and dried him. He cast aside his cloak and sat beside Cressela. She gave him a loaf of bread and some water. "Sorry I didn't pack any ramen," she said with a smile.

Naruto chuckled at the statement. "It's ok. I packed some before I left." Cressela laughed. "I was serious," Naruto said, pulling packs of premade ramen out of his bag.

She started at him with an inscrutable expression. "Some things never change." She moved closer to the fire. "Why did you follow me?"

"That note you left gave me the courage to leave, even though I knew what I was going to be leaving behind."

"You do know that since you followed me, you will be considered a traitor as soon as you step back into that village, right?"

"Yes."

"Now we have to wait."

"Wait for what?"

"Not _what_, but _who._ My leader and the group will be here shortly."

"Does this mean I'm going to have to get that mark you have?"

"If you did, it wouldn't affect you. The Nine-Tailed Fox would be able to keep the mark at bay, even if told Tsunade everything you know about the organization."

_Kyuubi, is that true?_ asked Naruto.

"**For me, keeping that mark at bay would be like you swatting a fly," Kyuubi responded.**

_That's reassuring,_ said Naruto. "So, do you know how far they are?"

"We're right here," said a new and mysterious voice. Naruto turned around and Cressela looked up from the fire. There were four people in black hooded cloaks, just like the one Cressela was wearing, standing at the entrance of the cave.

"Cressela, who's your friend?" asked one of the hooded figures. He removed his cloak and sat next to Naruto. He was wearing an orange mask and plated armor. He had pitch-black hair, and, if you look closely at the hole on the right side of the mask, a Sharingan eye.

"This is Naruto. Naruto, meet Tobi," responded Cressela.

Naruto extended his hand to Tobi, but Tobi only raised his hand and waved it violently in the air.

"Hi," said the second figure. He took off his cloak also. He had blue skin and gills on the sides of his head.

"Kisame," Naruto said.

"You remember me? You have one hell of a memory, kid." He grinned, showing his dangerously sharp teeth.

The third didn't bother to say hello. She took off her cloak and sat as far away from Naruto as possible. She had blue hair and an origami flower placed in it. She had a piercing below her lower lip and on her ears. She was wearing dark blue eye shadow which could frighten most people. Naruto and the woman glared at each other with great intensity.

"Konan, say hi," said Cressela.

Konan flicked her eyes towards Cressela and scowled. She moved her gaze back to Naruto. "…Go to hell."

"You first," Naruto responded.

"What's wrong with you two?" said the fourth figure in a calm and gentle tone. He removed his cloak. Jiraya.

Naruto didn't look up, so he didn't see his teacher that he thought was dead. Konan was the first to respond. "He killed Pein."

"Good job Naruto!" said Jiraya very loudly.

This time, Naruto was forced to look up. Naruto's eyes widened, then he blacked out.

"Cressela, you didn't tell him?" asked Jiraya.

She lifted up her arm and showed him the mark on her wrist. "I'm not allowed to, remember?"

"Oh yeah."


End file.
